Become Free
by MysteryLizard
Summary: "D-Did you get the results yet?.." Lucy asked. Natsu shook his head. "No, they haven't come inside." He replied, still fiddling with his scarf nervously. - Sometimes, you have to make hard choices in your life. Ones that aren't for your selfish desires, but that are for the ones you love. That is something that Natsu has to face. - One Shot.


**Hello readers! :3**

 **this of course has spoilers**

 **This story is more personal to me. My cat, Tihon, died on the 28th of July because of FeLV, which is short for Feline Leukaemia Virus. He was still young for a Russian Blue, and died at the age of 8.**

 **I wrote this as a tribute to him. All of Natsu's actions are like mine. I didn't stay to see the injection, I couldn't bear it. I saw his body afterwards, and I felt slightly happy (Mostly sad) for him, since he was finally released from the pain.**

 **My mum and I, however, got a new kitten. I named her Sofie. She's a mixed breed of a Ragdoll and the Siberian Forest cat. Unlike Tihon, she's extremely hyper and you can't take your eye off of her.**

 **I miss Tihon a lot. He's been with me since 2009, I was still in Primary School when we got him from a friend of my mum's.**

 **May he rest in peace.**

Natsu sat in a chair, quietly tugging on his scarf next to a small hospital bed.

There lay his feline buddy, Happy. The blue cat had become a more paler blue this year, and he had begun sleeping more. His once big and bright eyes had now become dull and half closed.

The pink haired owner didn't know until January this year that he was diagnosed with a deadly disease, that was unique to the exceed breed, known as the 'Exceed Leukaemia Virus', or ExLV.

It would shorten Happy's lifespan, and weaken his immune system. He waited patiently for the results of the exceed's most recent blood test, tears threatening to fall.

The white door creaked open, and in came Lucy. Natsu turned to her, noticing her red and puffy eyes. She ran over to him, giving him a back hug and crying into his shoulder.

"D-Did you get the results yet?.." Lucy asked. Natsu shook his head.

"No, they haven't come inside." He replied, still fiddling with his scarf nervously.

Erza and Gray were both on missions, and Wendy went inside to help with the blood test. Charle was in the room, but refused to speak as she sat next to the tom cat.

"Mr Dragneel?" A brown haired nurse walked inside from the door that Lucy just came from, a clipboard in arms. She walked in slowly, staring at the worried dragon slayer and celestial mage. Wendy stood by the door, tears crawling down her face.

Natsu already could guess that it was bad news. The vet that had come in earlier said that his kidneys were abnormally large. Happy wouldn't eat, and when his mouth was checked, he retaliated violently. Before the man noticed he had stated that the exceed could possibly have a gum infection which could easily be treated or a bad tooth which they could take out. He offered to take a blood test just in case and Natsu agreed that Happy should be checked.

"What are the results?" Natsu asked softly, expecting to be disappointed. Who knows, maybe this would be the end of the road.

"It is bad. I'm afraid that his kidneys have stopped working." A knife struck through Natsu's heart and he turned his gaze away from the woman as she talked and instead looked at Happy, who sleepily looked at the ceiling. Natsu clutched his paw gently, rubbing the paws at the bottom of them. "Ms Marvell has confirmed that he has a tumour and cannot be treated. You may either take him home and let him live until his death, which may come as early as this night, or you may put him to sleep peacefully."

Lucy stared at the nurse, her breathing shaky and her eyes wet. She glanced at Natsu and hugged him, as the teen sobbed quietly.

"Would he suffer during the time he has alive?" He asked.

"Yes. It is painful for him to eat, drink and even live." She confirmed, holding in tears of her own as she stared at her patient. Natsu nodded slowly.

"Put him to sleep." He decided, his voice strained. Natsu didn't want to say those words and let Happy go. He was so attached to the cat, that he didn't want anything but for him to be, well, happy. If the cat would suffer, then maybe it would be better for him to pass away to the next life.

Lucy wanted to protest but she knew better. She knew that it was just as hard if not, harder for him than her to let Happy go.

Happy's eyes seemed lifeless but they still turned to look at Natsu and his mouth opened, and then closed. A small purr rumbled through his body, and his tail shifted slightly.

The nurse left silently, telling Wendy that she would come back after they had said their goodbyes. The sky dragon slayer nodded and walked up to the pair.

"I'm sorry my magic can't do anything." She stared down at the floor, disappointed in herself. The girl couldn't treat or heal the tumour at all.

A hand rubbed her head gently. She looked up, meeting eyes with Natsu, who didn't seem angry with her at all.

"We tried to help him didn't we? This is the only way he will feel better." He turned back to Happy and stood up, letting go of Happy's paw and the purring stopped. "I'm sorry, little buddy." Natsu apologised, preparing to say his last goodbye. "I tried everything, hell, if I had the smarts, I would probably go down Zeref's path and try resurrecting you." He stroked the exceed's white belly and then put his hand back onto his scarf. "I'm so sorry."

He turned to Lucy, who was now a bright pink. He signalled for her to begin saying her farewell.

The girl stroked the cat behind the ears affectionately, never wanting to let him go.

"Happy, I wish we could have helped you. I wish we could have gone on more adventures. Just wait for us, will you? Stay with my mum and dad and Igneel, okay?" She took her hand away. The cat already looked dead in her eyes. "Goodbye, Happy. See you someday."

When Lucy ran over to Natsu to hug him, Wendy and Charle decided to say their goodbyes.

"Happy, I am so sorry. I was useless and couldn't help you. I'm so sorry. I couldn't even make you feel better." The blue haired girl apologised over and over again, muttering it under her breath as she stroked his head.

Charle decided to speak up, tears of her own falling down her fur.

"I wish I could help you, Happy. I too… loved your company. You were a kind tom cat and I'm sorry we couldn't go on more adventures." The exceed didn't want to stay in the room. She already felt sick staying there even though the virus only passes on by saliva. "May we meet again." Charle flew over to one of the seats, crying and Wendy followed after.

"Mr Dragneel, I need you to sign this form." The nurse came in once again, passing the clipboard she had been holding to Natsu, who reluctantly let go of Lucy. "Tick your option. You may either take his ashes-"

"He's a free cat, so spread his ashes across the air." Natsu interrupted, ticking the box so his ashes would soar upwards. It hurt. Nothing would be left of him apart from his memories and possibly the ashes in the air and pictures of the cat.

"Please sign it, confirming that you want to do this." Before he signed it, Lucy decided to ask a question.

"What would you do if this was your pet?" She asked the nurse.

"I would do the same. I would put them to sleep and if they were as free as this cat, then I would also let his ashes blanket the air. May his spirit rest peacefully." She answered as Natsu signed the form and passed it to her. The nurse turned to the other people in the room. "I am going to inject him with two liquids, the second which will put him to sleep. You don't have to watch."

Everyone left apart from Natsu and Lucy, who both decided to stay. They both stroked the cat reassuringly. Happy's paw was wrapped in a bandage and it was going to be where he would be injected. They turned him over to the side by the nurse's request.

"It's going to be okay, it's going to be okay…" Lucy muttered under her breath multiple times while Natsu remained silent, stroking Happy.

"I should warn you, some cats do gasp even after their heartbeats stop, will you be okay?" Natsu nodded but Lucy froze. He turned to her.

"You don't have to stay." She nodded and kissed the cat's forehead one last time before leaving. Thanks to his heightened senses, Natsu could hear her sobbing and Wendy's attempts to comfort her as she too cried.

He stared at Happy and kneeled down. The exceed faced him, his eyes as blank as a clean sheet of paper. Happy opened his mouth again, and this time it stayed open as the nurse got ready to perform the first injection.

"This one isn't the finisher, it is just to calm him down and relieve him from any pain." Natsu nodded and she inserted the needle. Happy remained unresponsive and lay with his mouth open, trying to remain awake.

The nurse took the other needle, small tears flowing from her eyes as she stared at the human and exceed.

"Hey buddy, you had a good life right?"

"…"

"I didn't hurt you, right?"

"…"

"It… isn't your fault or mine, right?"

"… Natshu…" The cat mumbled as he stared at his pink haired partner's pained face. He released a small fanged smirk. "You and I had a great time." Natsu was on the edge of breaking down, and just to be safe, he nodded and didn't talk.

The nurse slowly injected the cat's paws. His eyelids turned heavy, and everything seemed to turn to white. However, Happy knew that there was something he should say before he died.

"Aye sir…" The exceed was finally at peace, and Natsu remained at his bed, crying at the sight of his dead body.

The nurse looked inside his mouth carefully and shook her head.

"Everything is clustered inside there. I wouldn't have let you go with him even if you wanted to." She left, opening the door and then closing it, leaving the owner with the lifeless corpse of his once happy living partner.

"That's fine…" Natsu muttered, stroking the cat. He didn't feel or hear Happy's heartbeat or pulse, which made him feel even worse. "It's nice to see you finally free from pain, Happy." Natsu told the body, smiling sadly.

 _ **In Loving Memory of Tihon,**_

 ** _A free spirited cat and loved boy._**

 ** _25th of June 2009 - 28th of July 2017._**


End file.
